Gabrielle Giffords: 'I Will Step Down This Week'

In a video message and with a bright smile, Gabrielle Giffords announced she will be resigning from Congress this week to focus on her recovery.

The representative from Arizona, a Democrat, was shot January 8, 2011, in Tucson by Jared Lee Loughner, who killed six people and injured 13.

“I don’t remember much from that horrible day, but I will never forget the trust you placed in me to be your voice,” Giffords says in the video. “Thank you for your prayers and for giving me time to recover. I have more work to do on my recovery, so to do what is best for Arizona I will step down this week.”

The New York Times reports that Giffords plans to “finish her Congress on Your Corner” event at the parking lot where the shooting took place as a private event, and that she may at some point run for election again.

“I will return, and we will work together for Arizona and this great country,” she said in the video.